Expanding: AST Marketing Group of Baton Rouge has invested in a 10,000-square-foot Chicago distribution center. In a statement, Carey Guglielmo, AST president and owner, says the center is an extension of the company’s business model. “Our team is very excited with our new DC partnership. We are confident that we have the most unique model in the state, if not the Gulf Coast,” Guglielmo says. “Our new distribution center partnership is an extension of our very unique and exclusive model.” AST is a distributor of co-branded merchandise.
Down: Entergy Corp. released earnings for first quarter indicating a decline compared to the same period last year. Nasdaq reports the company’s profit declined to $242.8 million, or $1.35 per share, from the first quarter of 2015. This was lower than $302.7 million, or $1.68 per share, in last year’s first quarter. Entergy says its revenue for the quarter fell 10.6% to $2.61 billion. This was down from $2.92 billion last year. The company says weather and income tax returns unfavorably impacted its first-quarter 2016 earnings. “Given the challenges and opportunities ahead, we are confident that we can deliver on our 2016 earnings commitments as well as our Adjusted Utility, Parent & Other long-term outlook,” says Leo Denault, Entergy chairman and chief executive officer. Read the full statement.
Dwindling: With U.S. economic growth stalling and global risks still looming, the odds of the Federal Reserve raising interest rates this spring are dwindling and Fed policymakers are likely to convey that message after a meeting this week, economists say. USA Today reports that while there’s virtually no chance of a rate hike at a two-day meeting that begins today, many economists had maintained their call of a June move even after a surprisingly cautious speech by Fed Chair Janet Yellen late last month. Since then, however, economic growth has slowed and an upward drift in inflation toward the Fed’s 2% annual target has lost steam. “They need to see evidence that the growth slowdown in the first quarter is transitory and inflation is actually firming,” says Barclays’ chief U.S. economist Michael Gapen, a former Fed staffer, says. Read the full story.
